SCOTS singer Amy MacDonald has been left stunned as she revealed that her 2006 hit This Is the Life is currently topping the charts – in Saudi Arabia.
The rocker, who peaked at number 28 in the UK chart with the anthem 16 years ago was speaking on the Restless Natives podcast on Saturday when she revealed the bizarre fact.
The 36-year-old told hosts Martin Compston and Gordon Smart how she found out through dozens of comments being left on her social media pages in Arabic – and believes it is thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo.
The video begins with the singer sitting across from Compston and Smart, saying: “That song [This Is the Life] is currently number one in Saudi Arabia for some unbeknownst reason to me.”
Host Smart looks stunned by the revelation as Compston poses a question, asking: “Do you get notifications on that?”
MacDonald, from Bishopbriggs, East Dunbartonshire, explains how the charts of a nation will inform management about their artists’ songs.
She says: “They have charts everywhere and the charts will go to management and things like that, but I’d started noticing that I was getting a lot of comments in Arabic on social media.”
This prompts the trio to burst into laughter as MacDonald admits she had no idea what was being said.
The chart-topper, married to footballer Richard Foster, confided in the hosts, saying: “I was like ‘Oh it looks lovely, but I’ve got no idea what it says’.
“There was just more and more and more of it, and I was like [to management] ‘There’s a lot of Arabic comments on social media’.”
This led MacDonald’s management company to investigate the splurge of comments on behalf of the artist to find out what was going on.
She then revealed that the cause was down to a footballing megastar adding: “Somebody looked into it and they were like ‘There seems to be a lot of videos on social media that are using This Is the Life that are [of] Ronaldo playing football in Saudi Arabia.”
Host Smart then adds that the British influence in the country might have helped, saying: “I was going to say, Jordan Henderson or somebody like that out there.”
This leads MacDonald to reveal that her friends have enjoyed her song’s new lease of life, with one of her pals capitalising on the British presence in Saudi Arabia.
The singer added: “Actually, one of my mates had done a photoshop of Jordan Henderson wearing an Amy MacDonald t-shirt.”
The Restless Natives podcase shared the clip to social media on Saturday writing: “Delighted to be joined by Scotland’s favourite chanter, the lovely Amy MacDonald.”
The post received over 3,000 likes from fans of the singer along with dozens of comments of praise for the Scots artist.
One said: “Amy MacDonald is honestly a class act.”
Another added: “When you’re singing the song, singing this is the life and you wake up in the morning and you’ve got a big fat wife.”
MacDonald topped the charts across Europe including in Belgium and Norway with her 2007 ballad, which was certified platinum in the UK.
